European Union urges G-20 to share data

Madrid: The European Union’s five biggest economies, including Germany and Britain, have agreed to share information on company ownership and are urging other nations to do the same to make it harder for criminals and tax cheats to avoid the law.

The move announced late Thursday comes as the leak of the so-called Panama Papers claimed another political casualty: Spain’s acting industry minister resigned after his name was linked to offshore companies. Iceland’s PM was forced to resign earlier this month as a result of the leak.

Britain’s Treasury chief George Osborne and his counterparts in Germany, France, Italy and Spain have agreed to share info on the beneficial ownership of companies.